


Feels Like Home

by TheCarmineWanker



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-29 17:45:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19405108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheCarmineWanker/pseuds/TheCarmineWanker
Summary: It really pissed me off how the writers handled the whole situation with Marco's age and Hekapoo's dimension, so here's an AU where he stayed an adult when he came back through the portal, to Earth, and had some adjustment issues like he should have.





	1. Chapter 1

“Later, H-Poo.” With that, Marco stepped through the portal back to Earth. He could faintly hear Hekapoo’s indignant cry of “don’t call me that!” behind him as he did so. Now, for the first time in 16 years, he was back, standing in his room with Star beside him. It was good to be back, sure, but it felt all wrong, somehow, and he was sure that the way his 30-year-old body changed the scale of everything around him didn’t help. It also certainly didn’t help that he hadn’t seen any of his friends or family in that 16 years. However, before he could think about it too much, Star enveloped him in a hug.

“It’s so good to have you back, Marco! Even though you were only gone for like eight minutes here so it wasn’t really that bad.” She beamed at him and he returned her smile.

“Likewise. You have no idea how good it is to see you again after so long.” Then, he hesitated, slightly frowning. “How do you think my parents will react? Like you said, it’s only been eight minutes here but I was gone for 16 years and…” He trailed off, gesturing to his adult body. Star frowned, squinting in thought for a second, but then just shrugged and smiled brightly. 

“I’m sure they’ll understand and just be glad you’re safe. You should go downstairs and talk to them and, while you do that, I’ll make us all some nachos to smooth the whole thing over, okay?” He nodded in agreement.

“Thanks, Star, you’re the best.” He let her lead the way downstairs. Just as they reached the base of the stairs, they were cut off by his dad.

“Who are you and why are you in my house?” Marco had never seen his dad so serious, extending a protective arm in front of his wife with a cold glare etched into his face.

“Dad, it’s me, Marco.” Before Rafael Diaz could so much as open his mouth to respond, Marco removed what was left of his hoodie and presented it to his parents. They both gasped.

“But-but that’s impossible!”

“Can we sit? I’ll explain everything.” 

Once they were all settled in the living room, Marco pulled out his scissors.

“These are dimensional scissors.” He opened a portal to demonstrate and then closed it. “I had borrowed a pair from Star so I could walk the laser puppies even though it was raining, but then, once I realized how convenient they are, I got carried away and started opening portals for all kinds of things. Then, I went to open another portal but this time it was orange and fiery and someone reached out of it, grabbed me, and dragged me through it. It was Hekapoo, a member of the magical high commission, because she is the one who makes all the dimensional scissors and the pair I had been using was actually hers. She took them back but said that I could earn my own pair, all I had to do was blow out the little flame on her head. It seemed easy enough, but it turns out she can teleport and clone herself.” He pulled out the notebook he’d been using to keep track while in the other dimension and showed it to them. “I spent 16 years snuffing out all her clones until finally, just now, I found her, blew out her flame, and earned these scissors. See? She put my name on them to mark them as mine.” He showed them. “But time moves differently in that dimension, which is how, while I was there for 16 years, only 8 minutes passed here, on Earth.” His parents gasped.

“16 years? So you’re 30 now?” His dad looked like he was going to pass out.

“Yeah.” His mother started to cry.

“You went and grew up and we weren’t even there for it.” Marco scratched the back of his head, frowning.

“I guess so.” 

After a few minutes of more crying and fretting, they finally calmed down.

“Well, then, there’s nothing we can do about it. You’ll just have to tell us everything about your time there.” His mom gave him a watery smile, which he returned. His dad looked like he wanted to argue, but Marco cut him off before he could.

“Of course, Mom.” And he obliged. For hours, they sat there, eating Star’s nachos and listening to Marco’s tales of adventure.


	2. Chapter 2

“So, what are you gonna do about Jackie?” Marco spit his cereal across the table at Star’s question.

“Er, sorry. Your question caught me by surprise. Honestly, I don’t know what to do about it.”

“Mmhmm, well, if you think of anything, let me know. You are technically still dating, after all.” His head hurt to think about it.

“I know, Star.”

“Alright, just be sure to let me know if there is anything I can do to help.” With a somewhat mischievous grin, she put her bowl in the sink and went back upstairs, leaving Marco to have a bit of an internal crisis.

\-------------

Star bounced into Marco’s room without knocking. “Okay, so, I figured I should tell you, I just texted Jackie a few minutes ago and she’ll be here in like three seconds! Isn’t that great? This way you can resolve everything now and just get it out of the way!”

“You what??? Star, that is not okay!” Unfortunately, before he could further protest, the doorbell rang. Thanks to Star literally shoving him out of his room and down the stairs, he was forced to open the door.

“Hey, Jackie.” She just looked at him in confusion.

“Who are you and why do you know my name? Are you like Marco’s cousin or something?” Marco sighed and ran a hand down his face.

“No it’s… complicated.” He took off his hood and showed it to her along with the scissors. Jackie looked like she was beginning to understand but was still very confused.

“What kind of complicated?” Using the scissors, he opened a portal to Hekapoo’s dimension. 

“Can I show you?” He offered her a hand, which, to his surprise, she took.

“Sure.” With that, he led her through the portal and into Hekapoo’s forge.

“Hey, Marco, who’s this? Your girlfriend?” Hekapoo cocked an eyebrow at him in amusement.

“Technically, yes. I figured bringing her here would be the best way to explain everything.” She nodded in agreement. “Where’s Nachos? I wanna go for a ride.”

“He’s right out back, just call him.” He smiled at her.

“Thanks, H-poo.”

“Don’t call me that!” She smacked him on the back of his head, singeing his hair a bit. Marco just laughed, taking Jackie with him as he walked outside. Nachos showed up seconds after Marco called him and, after a proper greeting, Marco got on his back, having Jackie get on behind him, and took off.

“So… you’re Marco.”

“Yes.”

“So what about everything else? Why are you suddenly an adult? What is this place? Who was that lady from earlier?”

“Time moves differently here. I spent 16 years here working to earn my dimensional scissors from Hekapoo, who you met just now, but while it was 16 years here, it was only 8 minutes in Earth time. As for this place, it’s Dimension X-103.”

“Huh.” They lapsed into a long, contemplative silence. Jackie took the opportunity to just take in the scenery and enjoy the ride.

“Hey, Marco?”

“Yes?”

“This means we’re breaking up, right?” He sighed.

“Yeah. I don’t really want to go to prison.” She laughed at that.

“Can we still be friends, though?”

“I don’t see why not.” He shot her a grin.

“Good.”

“So… now that you’re an adult and all, what are you gonna do?” Marco stiffened. He hadn’t thought of that.

“I’ll probably head back to Mewni with Star first and see what I can do there. If I’m ever at a loss, I’ll just come back here.”

“You’re not just gonna stay here with her?” 

“What, you mean Hekapoo? No, of course not, why would I do that?” From her position behind him, Jackie could see the blush creeping up his neck. She smirked.

“I dunno, maybe I got the wrong impression, but you guys seemed pretty friendly with each other. You sure you didn’t have some sordid affair or something while you were here?”

“N-no of course not! I would never!” Jackie laughed at his obvious discomfort. He pouted a bit. “Seriously though, she’s just a friend and, besides, I never would have done something like that while we were still technically together.” He shot her a smile and she melted a bit.

“I know, Marco.”


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a little over two months since Marco had returned to Mewni and, if he was being completely honest with himself, he was unhappy. After some introspection, he had realized that it was because he simply did not belong on Mewni. Sure, Star may have been his best friend, but he had only known her for a few months before he went off and spent 16 years in another dimension working to earn those scissors without her. He did appreciate her as a person and enjoy her company but, at the end of the day, Star and Mewni were just relatively less significant in his life.

Then, it was a question of where he did belong. Even though he did, in many ways, belong on Earth, staying there permanently was out of the question. Government documentation would be a nightmare since his birth certificate, passport, and social would all be unusable since they’re made for a 14 year old boy. Without any of that, he would have no hope of getting a driver’s license or even a job and, as such, could never hope to build a life there. He did intend to visit his parents as often as possible, though.

That, realistically, left him with one option: return to Hekapoo’s dimension. It was strange to think of it this way but he had actually spent more time with her than in his own dimension with his parents. In the 16 years he spent chasing her, they had grown close. Honestly, he should have just stayed there in the first place, rather than listening to Star and trying to return to his old life. Hekapoo would probably have work he could do and, if he was lucky, she might even be willing to let him stay with her. With his mind made up, he went to inform Star of his decision. He found her in her room.

“Hey, Star, can I talk to you for a minute?” 

“Sure, Marco, what is it?” She looked excited, though, to be fair, she always was.

“I’ve thought about it and I’m going back to Dimension X-103. It’s where I belong and, honestly, I should’ve just stayed there in the first place. But, hey, I’m sure we’ll see each other again.” Star shook her head vigorously.

“Wait wait wait wait wait, you’re leaving? But why?” Marco sighed.

“I know that, for you, I was gone for eight minutes but, for me, it was 16 years. More than half of my entire life. It’s just too hard to try and pick up where I left off 16 years ago, I’ve changed too much. I know you were my best friend, Star,” her eyes began to water at his use of the past tense, “and I still think you’re a great person and really appreciate you, but so much has changed. I spent 16 years in that dimension with Hekapoo, which is even more time than I’ve spent on Earth with my own parents. That’s why, even though I do care about you and Mewni, X-103 is where I truly belong and… I need to go home.” 

“I… get it, Marco. Geez, I’m sorry, it seems so obvious now, how hard this is for you, and I’m just sorry I didn’t see it sooner. I’m sure Hekapoo will be glad to have you back.” She offered him a weak smile. “Say hi to her for me, okay?”

“Okay.” Just then, the breath was knocked out of him as Star tackled him in a bear hug. He chuckled.

“Bye, Marco.” Dropping her arms, she stepped back.

“Bye, Star.” With that, he opened a portal and, in seconds, left Star alone in her room.

\---------

“Back so soon?” Hekapoo casually leaned back in her chair, smirking at her friend.

“Hasn’t it been a bunch of millennia here?” Marco took the seat next to her. After grabbing Nachos at Hekapoo’s forge, Marco found the lady in question at the tavern. 

“When you’re immortal, like me, a millennium feels like a minute. Plus, I’ve had plenty of stuff to do in other dimensions, so that really helps pass the time.” She took a long, slow sip of her drink. “So, what brings you here this time?”

“I’m staying.” She raised an eyebrow at him.

“Really? I thought you were off in Mewni with your BFF living happily ever after and all that jazz. What happened to that?”

“You.” Hekapoo turned bright red.

“WHAT?”

“Wait, no, sorry, Hekapoo, I should’ve phrased that better. All I mean is that it’s clear I don’t belong in Mewni and there’s a few reasons I can’t stay on Earth because of everything that’s changed and, really, when you think about it, all that’s changed is you and me. I spent 16 years here with you and, in the process, this became my home. I can’t stay in Mewni because it’s not home and, more importantly, because you’re not there.” Not for the first time in their conversation, Hekapoo felt like there was a real possibility she could just keel over and die right then and there, even though she’s immortal, because of Marco freaking Diaz.

“Are you saying that you think of me as ‘home’?” Her voice was low and quiet but he heard her perfectly well. With her question, everything clicked into place for him.

“Yes, exactly! It’s like I could stay anywhere, as long as you’re there but, without you, it just felt wrong, like something was missing. That’s why I came back.”

“You do know what this sounds like, right?” He cocked his head to one side in thought and then clearly had a revelation as he suddenly flushed scarlet and buried his face in his hands. Hekapoo just laughed. “Okay, good to know you’re not a complete idiot.” She cupped his face in her hand and lifted it from his hands, forcing him to meet her eyes. “I like you too, doofus.” 

His eyes widened in surprise and, before he had time to respond, she kissed him. After a moment, she pulled back, smiling softly at him.

“I guess I could say the same to you, what you said just now. This dimension has always been my home but, when you left, it stopped feeling that way. Like you said, it felt like something was missing. I’m glad you came back.” He smiled at her.

“Me too. I mean, the only drawback is that because of the weird nature of time here, I’ll probably never get to see my family again or like maybe once. Within 20 minutes of normal time, I’ll be dead from old age.”

“Um, you do know I can make you immortal, right?”

“Wait, really?” Hekapoo chuckled.

“Yeah, I mean how long do you think I’ve been alive and will continue to live? You’d be no good to me with your stunted human lifespan. But, wait, were you seriously going to just give up your family and friends to be with me?” He nodded. 

“Of course.”

“Are you *trying* to kill me?” She laughed as she wiped away the tears welling up in her eyes.

“Nah, I think you’re just losing your touch.”

“Probably. You kinda have that effect on me, I hate it.”

“You’re welcome.” 

Cupping her face, he brushed away a stray tear.

“Thank you.” With that, she closed the small distance between them and kissed him again.


End file.
